Amazon agrees to crack down on sales of toxic school supplies

Amazon agreed to crack down on sales of toxic school supplies after an investigation revealed some products from Amazon.com contained illegal levels of toxic metals including lead and cadmium. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Amazon has agreed to crack down on sales of toxic school supplies after an investigation revealed some products from Amazon.com contained illegal levels of deadly metals including lead and cadmium.

The Attorney General’s office tested children’s school supplies for harmful levels of cadmium and lead in 2017 and 2018 in partnership with the Washington State Department of Ecology. Two rounds of testing turned up 51 products that were positive for illegal levels of cadmium and lead.

Some pencil pouches had parts that tested positive for lead at 8,500 ppm — which is over 80 times the legal limit.

Amazon’s own tests also concluded products contained the toxic metals.

Following the discovery of the toxic products, Amazon issued more than $200,000 in refunds and contacted purchasers, encouraging them to dispose of the items.

Amazon agreed to block the sale of school supplies and jewelry on its website without lab reports and proof to ensure the products are not toxic. The company will also pay $700,000 to the Attorney General’s office to fund environmental protection efforts.

In addition to discontinuing sales of products containing the toxic metals, all product sellers must provide certificates and testing from accredited labs that prove items are safe.

Any items found containing toxic metals must be removed from Amazon.com within two days, the Washington Attorney General’s Office mandated.

“Customer safety is Amazon’s top priority. We work closely with our selling partners to verify that the school supplies and children’s jewelry in our store are safe and drive continuous improvement to our processes to verify the safety of these products. We welcome ongoing collaboration with the Attorney General and other agencies to promote customer safety,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement sent to the Daily News.